Varies from the Andes Mountains to the Atacama Desert to the Amazon basin rain forest

Salar de Uyuni, the world’s largest salt flat – during seasonal floods, it is the world’s largest mirror – reflecting the skies from its perfectly flat surface. These properties make it one of the best places in the world to help calibrate satellites. It also contains 60% of the world’s lithium reserves. It is a tourist attraction.

There is a limestone cliff with over 5000 dinosaur footprints – many dating back 68 million years

Sports

Futbol (soccer) is the national sport. Also futbol de salon which is played on a basketball court fitted with small goals and a smaller ball.

Paleta is a racquet sport that is very popular. Swimming, mountain climbing, tennis, white water rafting are also enjoyed

Animals

Flamingoes, sloths, llamas, spectacled bear, over 1000 bird species

Facts of Interest

Lake Titicaca is the largest lake in SA and is the highest commercially navigable body of water in the world

The clock on the National Congress building runs backward to remind citizens to think differently

Lunch is the most important meal of the day

Market day is an important social event

Their large natural gas deposits and expansion of soybean cultivation are helping the economy

They also export zinc, gold, wood, Brazil nuts, quinoa

Concerns

Once part of the Inca empire, they went through several wars, loss of some territory, the guerrilla movement from Cuba with Che Guevara, military coups, and finally returned to civilian rule by 1995

Income inequality between the largely impoverished natives and the European elite remains vast.

It is the 3rd largest producer of coca and cocaine – a huge problem – but a major source of revenue for the indigenous farmers

Forced labor and sex trafficking domestically and abroad with the rural poor and the LGBT youth particularly vulnerable